Robert Johnson: The Complete Original Masters - Centennial Edition Box Set

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by marc roberty, Feb 17, 2011.

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  1. marc roberty

    marc roberty Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    london england
    This looks interesting!

    http://www.yourwaytomusic.com/rober...-original-masters-centennial-edition-box-set/

    May 8, 2011, marks the 100th birthday of Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson, who, according to legend, sold his soul down at the crossroads of Highway 61 and Highway 49 in a midnight bargain that has haunted the music world for three-quarters of a century. The ‘deal’ brought forth Johnson’s incandescent guitar technique and a run of 10-inch 78 rpm singles for the Vocalion, Oriole, Conqueror and Perfect labels recorded in San Antonio in 1936 and Dallas in 1937. Those songs have become a cornerstone of Columbia Records’ identity, and will be celebrated on two CENTENNIAL releases from Columbia/Legacy, a division of SONY MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT.
    Over the years, Johnson’s influence has resounded in the music of Muddy Waters (“32-20 Blues”), Elmore James (“I Believe I’ll Dust My Broom”), Junior Parker (“Sweet Home Chicago”), John Hammond Jr. (“Milk Cow’s Calf Blues”), the Rolling Stones (“Love In Vain,” “Stop Breakin’ Down Blues”), John Mayall (“Ramblin’ On My Mind”), Cream (“From Four Until Late”), Eric Clapton (“Cross Road Blues”), Johnny Winter (“When You Got a Good Friend”), Paul Butterfield and Bonnie Raitt (“Walkin’ Blues”), Fleetwood Mac and ZZ Top (“Hellhound On My Trail”), Led Zeppelin (“Traveling Riverside Blues”), Keb’ Mo’ (“Preachin’ Blues”), Cassandra Wilson (“Come On In My Kitchen”), and countless others. It is by far the most empowering body of work in American history to emerge from one solitary blues figure.
    As recently as this year, John Mayer was nominated for a Grammy Award® for Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance, for his cover of “Crossroads” on his Battle Studies album, Columbia, 2009. “Cross Road Blues,” of course, gives Eric Clapton’s annual Chicago music festival its title.
    On the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Robert Johnson’s birth, Columbia/Legacy pays homage to his spirit with ROBERT JOHNSON: THE COMPLETE ORIGINAL MASTERS – CENTENNIAL EDITION, a multi-faceted “box set” encompassing stand-alone vinyl, CD and DVD components. Its components include:
    1) A hardbound vintage book, with sleeves housing the dozen 78rpm vinyl-disc replicas (now at 45 rpm) originally released by Johnson, including a lavish 10-inch-square booklet;
    2) ROBERT JOHNSON: THE CENTENNIAL COLLECTION, a new double-CD which includes all 29 songs he recorded in 1936 and ’37, for a combined total of 42 masters and alternate takes;
    3) RARITIES FROM THE VAULTS, a double-CD comprising:
    CD One: Blues From The Victor Vault, a dozen rarely-collected 78s (i.e. 24 A-sides and B-sides) from the Victor archive by Frank Stokes, Tommy Johnson, Sleepy John Estes, Furry Lewis, Memphis Minnie, Blind Willie McTell, and others, recorded between 1928 and 1932; and
    CD Two: Also Playing…, 10 tracks featuring artists recorded during the same San Antonio and Dallas sessions as Robert Johnson, a musical hotpot ranging from folk and hillbilly, cowboy and Mexican to Texas Swing;
    4) THE LIFE & MUSIC OF ROBERT JOHNSON: CAN’T YOU HEAR THE WIND HOWL?, a DVD of the critically-acclaimed 1997 documentary film, directed by Peter Meyer, hosted by Danny Glover, and featuring Keb’ Mo’ as Robert Johnson. The 76-minute film also includes interviews with Robert Cray, Johnny Shines, John Hammond, Honeyboy Edwards, Robert Lockwood Jr., Henry Townsend, Eric Clapton and Keith Richards.
    The four components will ship together and are available exclusively at www.thecompleterobertjohnson.com in advance of their April 26th release. This package will not be available in stores.
    The most unique component of ROBERT JOHNSON: THE COMPLETE ORIGINAL MASTERS – CENTENNIAL EDITION will be a 10×10-inch hardbound book that recreates the look and feel of Johnson’s classic 78rpm vinyl singles. The book will be constructed in the style of vintage multi-sleeve albums of the 1930s and ’40s, with each sleeve containing an actual vinyl replica disc. An additional sleeve will house a smaller book that includes a new 1,500-word essay written by Ted Gioia, Texas-based pianist and music historian, and the author of Delta Blues: The Life and Times of the Mississippi Masters Who Revolutionized American Music (2008); Work Songs (2006); and The History of Jazz (1997). Complete historic track annotation and discographic data is also featured.
    Gioia’s notes painstakingly examine the songs that were laid down on each of the five days that Johnson recorded in 1936 and ’37:
    Monday, November 23, 1936 (San Antonio, Texas): “Kindhearted Woman Blues,” “I Believe I’ll Dust My Broom,” “Sweet Home Chicago,” “Ramblin’ On My Mind,” “When You Got A Good Friend,” “Come On In My Kitchen,” “Terraplane Blues,” “Phonograph Blues”;
    Thursday, November 26, 1936 (San Antonio, Texas): “32-20 Blues”;
    Friday, November 27, 1936 (San Antonio, Texas): “They’re Red Hot,” “Dead Shrimp Blues,” “Cross Road Blues,” “Walking Blues,” “Last Fair Deal Gone Down,” “Preachin’ Blues (Up Jumped The Devil),” “If I Had Possession Over Judgment Day”;
    Saturday, June 19, 1937 (Dallas, Texas): “Stones In My Passway,” “I’m A Steady Rollin’ Man,” “From Four Until Late”;
    Sunday, June 20, 1937 (Dallas, Texas): “Hellhound On My Trail,” “Little Queen Of Spades,” “Malted Milk,” “Drunken Hearted Man,” “Me And The Devil Blues,” “Stop Breakin’ Down Blues,” “Traveling Riverside Blues,” “Honeymoon Blues,” “Love in Vain,” “Milkcow’s Calf Blues.”
    THE CENTENNIAL COLLECTION double-disc set shares the same genealogy as 1990′s Robert Johnson – The Complete Recordings, but that package has now been updated for a new generation. The set includes a new essay by Ted Gioia alongside a new biography of Robert Johnson written by Stephen C. LaVere (completely different from his essay in the 1990 version). Also included are new illustrations, photo images, and a family tree of music originating from Robert Johnson. THE CENTENNIAL COLLECTION will ship as part of the ROBERT JOHNSON: THE COMPLETE MASTERS – CENTENNIAL EDITION package, but it will also be available as a stand-alone item at retail.
    Less than 14 months after Johnson’s last recording date, he was dead at age 27. The young bluesman was poisoned with strychnine-laced whiskey by a jealous husband at a jook joint, and days later he died on the night of August 16, 1938. Gioia points out that the closest thing to a hit record Johnson would enjoy during his lifetime was his first release on Vocalion Records, “Terraplane Blues” b/w “Kindhearted Woman Blues.” Ten more records were released while he lived, and one posthumously, “Love in Vain” b/w “Preachin’ Blues (Up Jumped The Devil).”
    “At times,” Gioia writes, “the legend of Robert Johnson has threatened to overwhelm the artistry of the man – indeed nothing about this musician is more famous than the word-of-mouth accounts of him selling his soul to the devil at a midnight crossroads in exchange for his singular mastery of blues guitar… the best efforts of scholars to present this artist in ordinary, human terms have done little to cut through the mystique and mystery that continue to surround him. Robert Johnson remains larger than life, a figure from American music who has also become part and parcel of American mythology.”
    In March, The Robert Johnson Blues Foundation (located in Crystal Springs, Mississippi) will announce a series of national and international centennial events for “Robert Johnson – The King of Delta Blues.” Steven Johnson, the Vice President of the Foundation and grandson to Robert Johnson, explains: “My grandfather is revered globally. This centennial celebration involves combining a unique blend of theatre, live musical performances, artistic exhibits and dialogue that highlight the complexity of his life while celebrating his genius. Our events will be following the Robert Johnson Blues Trail, which will allow us to travel to many of the cities where he shared his talents and where his music is most loved. This is important because his voice, style and musical gifts were the foundation for American popular music.” For more information about the centennial events visit www.RobertJohnsonBluesFoundation.org.
    ROBERT JOHNSON: THE COMPLETE ORIGINAL MASTERS – CENTENNIAL EDITION (Columbia/Legacy 88697 86066 1)
    Sleeve 1: Vocalion 03416 – Kind Hearted Woman Blues (S1) / Terraplane Blues (S1)
    Sleeve 2: Oriole 7-04-60 – 32-20 Blues (S2) / Last Fair Deal Gone Down (S3)
    Sleeve 3: Conqueror 8871 – Dead Shrimp Blues (S3) / I Believe I’ll Dust My Broom (S1)
    Sleeve 4: Romeo 7-05-81 – Ramblin’ On My Mind (S1) / Cross Road Blues (S3)
    Sleeve 5: Romeo 7-07-57 – Come On In My Kitchen (S1) / They’re Red Hot (S3)
    Sleeve 6: Vocalion 03601 – Sweet Home Chicago (S1) / Walkin’ Blues (S3)
    Sleeve 7: Vocalion 03623 – From Four Until Late (D4) / Hell Hound On My Trail (D5)
    Sleeve 8: Perfect 7-10-65 – Malted Milk (D5) / Milkcow’s Calf Blues (D5)
    Sleeve 9: Perfect 7-12-67 – Stones In My Passway (D4) / I’m A Steady Rollin’ Man (D4)
    Sleeve 10: Vocalion 04002 – Stop Breakin’ Down Blues (D5) / Honeymoon Blues (D5)
    Sleeve 11: Vocalion 04108 – Little Queen Of Spades (D5) / Me And The Devil Blues (D5)
    Sleeve 12: Vocalion 04630 – Preachin’ Blues (S3) / Love In Vain (D5)
    Recording index:
    S1 – San Antonio, Texas: Monday, November 23, 1936
    S2 – San Antonio, Texas: Thursday, November 26, 1936
    S3 – San Antonio, Texas: Friday, November 27, 1936
    D4 – Dallas, Texas: Saturday, June 19, 1937
    D5 – Dallas, Texas: Sunday, June 20, 1937
    ROBERT JOHNSON: THE CENTENNIAL COLLECTION (Columbia/Legacy 88697 85907 2)
    CD One (San Antonio sessions) – Selections: 1. Kindhearted Woman Blues (S1) 2. Kindhearted Woman Blues (alternate take) (S1) 3. I Believe I’ll Dust My Broom (S1) 4. Sweet Home Chicago (S1) 5. Ramblin’ On My Mind (S1) 6. Ramblin’ On My Mind (alternate take) (S1) 7. When You Got A Good Friend (S1) 8. When You Got A Good Friend (alternate take) (S1) 9. Come On In My Kitchen (S1) 10. Come On In My Kitchen (alternate take) (S1) 11. Terraplane Blues (S1) 12. Phonograph Blues (S1) 13. Phonograph Blues (alternate take) (S2) 14. 32-20 Blues (S3) 15. They’re Red Hot (S3) 16. Dead Shrimp Blues (S3) 17. Cross Road Blues (S3) 18. Cross Road Blues (alternate take) (S3) 19. Walking Blues (S3) 20. Last Fair Deal Gone Down (S3) 21. Preaching Blues (Up Jumped The Devil) (S3) 22. If I Had Possession Over Judgment Day (S3).
    CD Two (Dallas sessions) – Selections: 1. Stones In My Passway (D4) 2. I’m A Steady Rollin’ Man (D4) 3. From Four Till Late (D4) 4. Hellhound On My Trail (D5) 5. Little Queen Of Spades (D5) 6. Little Queen Of Spades (alternate take) (D5) 7. Malted Milk (D5) 8. Drunken Hearted Man (D5) 9. Drunken Hearted Man (alternate take) (D5) 10. Me And The Devil Blues (D5) 11. Me And The Devil Blues (alternate take) (D5) 12. Stop Breakin’ Down Blues (D5) 13. Stop Breakin’ Down Blues (alternate take) (D5) 14. Traveling Riverside Blues (D5) 15. Traveling Riverside Blues (alternate take) (D5) 16. Honeymoon Blues (D5) 17. Love in Vain (D5) 18. Love in Vain (alternate take) (D5) 19. Milkcow’s Calf Blues (D5) 20. Milkcow’s Calf Blues (alternate take) (D5).
    BLUES RARITIES FROM THE VAULTS
    CD One: BLUES FROM THE VICTOR VAULT
    1.South Memphis Blues
    Frank Stokes
    1929
    2.Bunker Hill Blues
    Frank Stokes
    1929
    3.Dry Land Blues
    Furry Lewis
    1928
    4.Cannonball Blues
    Furry Lewis
    1928
    5.She’s Got Jordan River
    R.T.Hanen
    1931
    6.Happy Days Blues
    R.T.Hanen
    1931
    7.Expressman Blues
    Sleepy John Estes
    1930
    8.Sweet Mama
    Sleepy John Estes
    1930
    9.Fence Breakin’ Blues
    Shreveport Home Wreckers
    1930
    10.Home Wreckin’ Blues
    Shreveport Home Wreckers
    1930
    11.Canned Heat Blues
    Tommy Johnson
    1928
    12.Big Fat Mama Blues
    Tommy Johnson
    1928
    13.Leavin’ Town
    Ishman Bracey
    1928
    14.The Four Day Blues
    Ishman Bracey
    1928
    15.I Never Told a Lie
    Memphis Minnie-Kansas Joe
    1930
    16.Don’t Want No Woman
    Memphis Minnie-Kansas Joe
    1930
    17. *Real Estate Mama
    Samuel “Fat” Westmoreland
    18. *Dreamin’ Blues
    Samuel “Fat” Westmoreland
    19.Cash Money Blues
    Kaiser Clifton
    1930
    20.Fort Worth and Denver Blues
    Kaiser Clifton
    1930
    21.Walking Blues
    Charlie Kyle
    1928
    22.No Baby Blues
    Charlie Kyle
    1928
    23.Lonesome Day Blues
    Ruby Glaze & Blind Willie McTell
    1932
    24.Searching the Desert for
    Ruby Glaze & Blind Willie McTell
    1932
    * indicates unissued.
    CD Two: ALSO PLAYING…
    1. The Chuck Wagon Gang – The Engineer’s Child (S2)
    2. Andres Berlanga y Francisco Montalvo – Que piensas tu que mi amore (S2)
    3. Andres Berlanga y Francisco Montalvo – Ay! que bonitos ojitos (S2)
    4. Hermanas Brazza y Daniel Palomo – Que Sera? (S3)
    5. Hermanas Brazza y Daniel Palomo – Muchos Besos (S3)
    6. Crystal Springs Ramblers – Tell Me Pretty Mama (D4)
    7. Crystal Springs Ramblers – Down In Arkansas (D4)
    8. Zeke Williams & His Rambling Cowboys – Breeze (D4)
    9. The Light Crust Doughboys – The Eyes of Texas (D5)
    10. The Light Crust Doughboys – Stay Out of the South (D5)
    SOURCE Legacy Recordings
     
  2. GroovinGarrett

    GroovinGarrett Mrs. Stately's Garden

    Location:
    Atlanta, GA
    10" 78rpm (pressed at 45rpm) vinyl replicas? Love the idea.

    [​IMG] :love:
     
  3. kwadguy

    kwadguy Senior Member

    Location:
    Cambridge, MA
    A question to those who are very familiar with Johnson's (limited) discography: Is there anything here of special note for someone who already has the 2CD box from years ago?
     
  4. bluesbro

    bluesbro Forum Hall of Shame

    Location:
    DC
    No remastering?
     
  5. Rfreeman

    Rfreeman Senior Member

    Location:
    Lawrenceville, NJ
    I'm holding out for the foil-wrapped cylinder edition
     
  6. KipB

    KipB Forum Resident

    Location:
    Bethel, CT, USA
    I am excited about the 2-CD set of his complete 42-track output. The two marvelous recent Sony CDs total up to only 34 tracks, so 8 have been relegated to the domain of the boxed set, which drowns everything in noise reduction (but hey, at least it offered them). This will mark the 4th time I've purchased most of this music, but I bet it won't set me back more than around $20.

    It is my hope it won't be sequenced like the boxed set with the master take followed by the alternate take, but I won't complain much even if it is.

    The more I listen to Robert Johnson, the better it gets. When I first bought Kind of the Delta Blues Singers -- Vol. I at 15, I wished I had my $7.99 back ... not anymore.
     
    Walt and McLover like this.
  7. Scope J

    Scope J Senior Member

    Location:
    Michigan
    Me too !!!:goodie:
     
  8. signothetimes53

    signothetimes53 Senior Member

    Would you still want to buy if you knew this thing will have a $349 price tag?!?

    For that price, you could have just about bought a Grateful Dead 1972 Europe 60-CD box set.

    Here's what the set looks like:
     

    Attached Files:

  9. Greg1954

    Greg1954 New Member

    Location:
    .
    Those replica records are to be able to be played?

    I'd the buy the set for vinyl 78 pressings from original metal, why yes.:)

    Otherwise, I don't need another package of Robert Johnson music. And those 'Victor Vault Rarities' such as Expressman Blues have been making the rounds on other comps for years,
     
    Hamhead likes this.
  10. I hit buy and went through the checkout until I saw the tax and freight they wanted to ship to New Zealand.
    Dont know how they calculated the tax(which i've never had to pay on any recordings I've imported) but its way more than our 15%GST.
    NZ$630 is getting pretty rich but even at that there's small voice that keeps saying that set of 10" discs would be so cool.
     
  11. DreadPikathulhu

    DreadPikathulhu Senior Member

    Location:
    Seattle
    Very, very nice set and very tempting.

    Figure about $50 for the 4 CDs and 1 DVD, which makes $300 for the 12 vinyl 45s pretty excessive, no matter how true they are in appearance to the originals.
     
  12. Paul W

    Paul W Senior Member

  13. Roninblues

    Roninblues 猿も木から落ちる。

    Hummmmmmmmmmm
     
  14. SuperFuzz

    SuperFuzz Forum Resident

    Location:
    NYC USA
    The same people at Sony who put the ridiculously high price tag on the "Genius of Miles Davis" box set must have also priced this. But the price on that dropped (probably due to lack of pre-orders) so let's hope the price on this drops too.
     
  15. Steve E.

    Steve E. Doc Wurly and Chief Lathe Troll

    Location:
    Brooklyn, NY, USA
    yeah, so who mastered the darn thing?
     
  16. signothetimes53

    signothetimes53 Senior Member

    That's the magic question. Hope they don't screw it up as they did with the 1990 box.
     
  17. Matthew B.

    Matthew B. Scream Quietly

    Location:
    Tokyo, Japan
    The sourcing and mastering will probably be much better than on the old box set, and it'll include the alternate version of "Travelling Riverside Blues" that surfaced as a bonus track on the 1998 re-release of King of the Delta Blues Singers.
     
  18. J.A.W.

    J.A.W. Music Addict

    The "old" (1990) box set was remastered and reissued in 1996. The 1998 CD reissue of King of the Delta Blues Singers was also remastered, as was the 2004 CD reissue of King of the Delta Blues Singers, Vol.2 - the former by Robert Vosgien, the latter by Joseph M. Palmaccio.
     
  19. LoveandTheft

    LoveandTheft Forum Resident

    Very nice...I want one...
     
  20. Matthew B.

    Matthew B. Scream Quietly

    Location:
    Tokyo, Japan
    Are you sure they remastered it? My copy is a 2004 issue from Sony Japan, and the sourcing and noise-reduction artefacts are much worse than on the two King of the Delta Blues Singers remasters.
     
  21. mikelevenson

    mikelevenson New Member

    Location:
    los angeles


    That is way too much money. I only want the records especially if they didn't remaster. I already have the rest!!
     
  22. MrRom92

    MrRom92 Forum Supermodel

    Location:
    Long Island, NY
    I'm a bit skeptical of this set, for multiple reasons...


    1. Most likely the records will be mastered from a digital source. Now, if it were a high rez source, I could see it being worthwhile. However, they're being cut at 45, which brings me to my second point...
    2. How can they, at a slower speed, make the grooves take up as much surface area as they would at 78, all the while being cut with a microgroove lathe? If you look closely, you can see the banding on the discs, indicating there are about 3 tracks per side.


    Let's all hope that they did all new transfers from the cleanest originals possible (stampers, pressed shellac, test pressings), all at hi-rez, on modern high-end equipment, with minimal processing. Then maybe this will be one of the only cds I purchase. Ill spring for the boxset too if its cut from something higher rez than the cds were mastered from. :thumbsup:
     
  23. ceddy10165

    ceddy10165 My life was saved by rock n roll

    Location:
    Avon, CT
    The 2 most important questions are unanswered -- what is the source of the transfer and mastering, and will it run at the correct speed and pitch?
     
  24. lukpac

    lukpac Senior Member

    Location:
    Milwaukee, WI
    The transfers/mastering on the two KOTDBS CDs is far better than on the box set. If this set matches or surpasses those, I would say it is worthwhile.

    It seems pretty unlikely what has been released is off-speed by any significant amount. Certainly nowhere near what some are suggesting.
     
  25. MikeyH

    MikeyH Stamper King

    Location:
    Berkeley, CA
    I'd expect these to be the same as the current CD set; I have no idea if there are hi-rez masters. I wouldn't expect Sony to go back and loan whatever rare originals and digitize them again for this, despite it's special editionness. The current ones are really good.

    You can make the groove pitch on a 45 what you like.. it doesn't affect the disc. Though they won't play as well if they actually do use the whole width, which it looks like they do. I don't see any banding. The listings say there's one track each side, 24 tracks on 12 discs.
    I have an ODJB reissue in this format (10 inch 45) and it's killer. Loud and silent surfaces, like a disco 45. I could drool over this one, but can't justify the cost.
     
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